It was a busy summer for Frank Lampard and Chelsea.
The Blues brought in several big name signings in the summer transfer window, with Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech among them.
Thiago Silva also joined on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain and he has had a positive impact on the Chelsea defence, with the experienced Brazilian being widely praised for how he has helped add solidity to the Blues' back line.
But another summer signing has been hailed for what he has done since joining Chelsea, with former Blues midfielder Scott Minto being full of praise for Ben Chilwell after his summer move from Leicester City.
"Ben Chilwell has come in and made as big an impact as Thiago Silva," Minto said, as reported by the Mirror.
“Don’t get me wrong, the spine of any side is absolutely crucial and you put the wide players in to add that extra.
“Games aren’t necessarily won by the spine of a side but they are dominated by it, whether that’s a Pep Guardiola domination with the ball or a Jose Mourinho domination without the ball, they control the game.
“But for someone like Chilwell to come in and hit the ground running is exactly what Chelsea needed.
“He has a great left foot, puts a great cross in and has a great engine as well. And where he has really added to Chelsea is in the defensive side of things."
And Minto has been impressed by how Chilwell has so quickly moved ahead of Emerson Palmieri and Marcos Alonso to become the established left-back in the Chelsea side, scoring two goals in 16 appearances since joining from the Foxes.
“With Chilwell, if there’s a one-on-one he can look after the winger, and when you have a full-back who can look after the job defensively but can also really do what they need to do going forward, you’re happy," he added.
“If you want to overload the midfield and therefore have possession of the ball, you need a full-back who can do the job of a full-back and a winger at the same time.
"Not only does Chilwell do well when he’s with the ball but he allows [Timo] Werner to come inside and bounce off Tammy Abraham, and between Werner and Abraham they have done really well."
Chilwell will be hoping to make his 17th appearance for the Blues when Frank Lampard's men face West Ham at Stamford Bridge tomorrow.
